Live Again
by NivMizzet6977
Summary: Harry Potter, seventeen year old wizard, meets a mysterious stranger who promises him a reward for saving thousands of lives. He then gets a surprise of a lifetime...both of them.
1. Birthday Surprise

It was July 31, a couple of months after the famous Harry Potter, Boy-Who-Lived, Chosen One, Vanquisher of the Dark Lord and any other title the public has given him against his wishes, has defeated Lord Voldemort, He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named, You-Know-Who, Dark Lord, Slytherin's Heir or Moldyshorts…or something like that. And Harry is currently celebrating his eighteenth birthday at the Burrow. Harry sighed. It was a day of celebration for the Wizarding World. After all, it is their hero's birthday. But Harry Potter knows that the war was in fact a tragedy. Too many people have died. He saw George, the usual laughter and mischief in his eyes replaced by grief. Fred was his twin, his partner, his other half. Without Fred, George was…incomplete, and not just because he lost an ear. He looked over to the corner where Andromeda Tonks is holding his peacefully sleeping godson, knowing that poor Teddy Lupin will grow up without parents. Harry vowed that unlike the Dursleys, he will treat the boy like a proper family and unlike Sirius, he will make sure that he is ever present in his godson's childhood. Thinking of Sirius left him hollow inside. It has been almost three years since his godfather died and he has only known him for a couple of years but the loss still hurt him. After all, Sirius was his father's best friend. He felt a lone tear slide down his cheek.

Everyone stopped talking when the Molly Weasley brought out the Harry's birthday cake. But no one came to blow the candles. No one came to make a wish. And that's when Ginny Weasley sprinted outside followed closely by Hermione and Ron. Ginny knew that Harry still hasn't forgotten the Final Battle and Ginny knew that he blames himself for those deaths. Stupid, noble prat. But then, he was _her_ stupid, noble prat. They found Harry sitting by the pond, lost in thoughts. Knowing Harry, those were probably miserable thoughts. Stupid, noble, miserable prat.

Harry was crying openly by now. Being the one destined to defeat Voldemort left him no time to mourn his losses, but now, he mourned. He mourned for his parents, he mourned for the Marauders, except for one rat, he mourned for Tonks, he mourned for Dumbledore and surprisingly, Snape. He mourned for Tom Marvolo Riddle, not Lord Voldemort but the orphan who was shunned because of his abilities and left to face the world alone. Both of them found their first home at Hogwarts and he felt sympathy and pity towards him. This train of thought was cut off when someone embraced him from behind. He caught the scent of something flowery and he managed to croak out.

"Ginny."

Ginny heard Harry say her name and she looked at tear stained face and smiled.

"It's not your fault Harry. It never was."

Harry gave her a watery smile and stared at her. Harry is confused by his own emotions but he knew that he loved Ginny. He hugged Ginny tightly, and she shrieked in surprise.

Ron was about to interrupt them, possibly to tell them off for showing their affection in front of him but Hermione held him back.

"They need each other Ron, now more than ever."

Ron nodded and allowed Hermione to pull him back to the Burrow. The others are surely worrying and they had to reassure Mrs. Weasley before she called the Aurors to do a search. And Harry being who he is, the whole Wizarding World would probably help.

Harry and Ginny just sat there, finding comfort in each other when a bright flash of blue light came out of nowhere. The next thing Harry knew, he was standing in a wide open area and he could see nothing but…whiteness. He jumped in surprise when he heard a low voice from behind him.

"Welcome, Harry Potter."

Harry turned to see a hooded figure. His cloak is a brilliant blue which reminded him of Albus Dumbledore's eyes. He shoved his hand into his pocket to draw his wand but his wand wasn't there. He stared at the figure.

"Who are you?" The figure chuckled.

"That is not important, child. What is important is your defeat of Lord Voldemort."

Harry was still staring at the figure, which took his silence as a signal to continue.

"Your deed has saved thousands of lives. But yet, you are drowning in misery and despair. Might I ask why?"

Harry thought about it for a second.

"The price was too high." He said shortly, apparently still suspicious of the stranger.

"I see. So, if someone offered you the chance to change everything, you would?"

Harry's eyes widened in shock as the implications of that's question hit him.

"Sweet Merlin, can you do that?" he asked. The figure chuckled.

"Yes, yes I can. But before I do, I must tell you that I am not sweet. Possibly salty if I'm sweating but not sweet. Good luck, Harry Potter."

The figure snapped his fingers, there was another flash of blue light and everything became black.

BOOM! There was a loud noise like a cannon and Harry bolted straight up.

"What the?" he looked around to find Ginny but she was nowhere in sight. He found himself in a rundown wooden shack and by the looks of it, it was raining outside. He was extremely surprised to see Uncle Vernon enter the room with a shotgun in his hands.

"Who's there? I'm warning you, I'm armed!" he bellowed at the door.

"Uncle Vernon? What are you doing here?" As far as Harry knew, he left the Dursleys when he was seventeen. Uncle Vernon was about to respond when the door flew from its hinges. And there, trying to squeeze through the doorway was Rubeus Hagrid. Harry remembered his "dream" and his eyes widened.

"Bloody hell…"


	2. Shopping Surprise

**Author's Note: 1) I don't own Harry Potter and I highly doubt I ever will, 2) The Next Generation is NOT abandoned, I am going to continue it once I am done with this story and 3) please, please, please review :D**

Hagrid looked at the people in the shack before bending down and placing the door back in its hinges. Vernon. Shotgun clutched firmly in his hands, stared at Hagrid who spoke in the gentle voice that was so familiar to Harry.

"Couldn't make us a cup o' tea, could yeh? It's not been an easy journey…"

He strode over to the sofa where Dudley was cowering.

"Budge up, yeh great lump."

Dudley squeaked and ran behind his mother, who was crouching, terrified, behind Uncle Vernon.

"An' here's Harry!"

Hagrid smiled at Harry and he couldn't help but grin back.

Las' time I saw you, you was only a baby. Yeh look a lot like yer dad, but yeh've got your mom's eyes."

Harry rolled his eyes inwardly. He really was getting tired of that. Uncle Vernon made a weird rasping noise.

"I demand that you leave at once, sir! You are breaking and entering!"

"Ah, shut up, Dursley, yeh great prune." Hagrid retorted as he reached over the sofa and yanked the gun out of Vernon's hands. He bent it into a knot and threw it into a corner of the room.

The conversation continued on like Harry remembered and when Hagrid asked Harry if he knew about Hogwarts, Harry grinned. Of course he knew, but if he said so, Hagrid would not terrorize the Dursleys.

"Hogwarts?" he asked innocently. Hagrid looked stunned.

"DURSLEY!"

Harry grinned again as Vernon insulted Albus Dumbledore and Hagrid gave Dudley a pig tail.

The following day, Hagrid took Harry to Diagon Alley. They entered the Leaky Cauldron and Harry was once again, congratulated as people shook his hands. He shivered at the sight of Professor Quirrel, knowing that Voldemort is sticking out of the back of his head. They entered Gringotts and Harry grinned when he heard Hagrid's words.

"Yeh'd be mad to try and rob it."

Harry filled his pouch with money from his vault and watched as Hagrid pocketed the grubby, little package from Vault seven hundred and thirteen. Apparently, he had to save the Sorcerer's Stone…again. They were about to leave Diagon Alley when he heard an eerily familiar voice.

"Look! The new Nimbus Two Thousand! Fastest ever!"

Harry spun around so fast that he almost lost his balance. There, his nose pressed against the window of Quality Quidditch Supplies, was Ron Weasley. He scanned the other boys looking at the broom and spotted more red heads. Fred, George and…Ginny. Harry tugged at Hagrid's coat.

"Uh, Hagrid? Can I talk to those kids? I want to make some new friends."

Hagrid looked at him and looked at the boys he was looking at.

"Course yeh can, Harry! Good choice to, those are the Weasley. Spent half me life chasing those twins outta the Forbidden Forest. I'll go introduce yeh."

They approached the red haired family and Hagrid talked to the plump woman they saw at the Apothecary earlier.

"Heya Molly, Harry here," he pulled Harry beside him, "wanted to make some friends and…"

Harry tuned out of the conversation and stared at Ginny and Ron. Looking at the twins made him feel sad, knowing that Fred is going to die. Of course, he'll do what he can to prevent that. Ron took his eyes off the Nimbus and saw Harry.

"Blimey! Are you Harry-" Harry covered Ron's hand with his mouth and made a shushing gesture. Fred and George stared at him.

"He is!"

"That's his scar!"

Harry groaned. The twins heard this and apologized profusely.

"Sorry about that Harry-"

"Didn't think you'd hate fame;"

"Name's Fred" Harry inwardly flinched.

"Mine's George"

"And this here's Ickle Ronnikins!" They finished together. Ron groaned.

"Stop calling me that!" Harry laughed and his eyes strayed to Ginny. She was frowning. Cogs turned in Harry's mind. It made no sense. At this point, Ginny should not be able to stay in the same room as Harry. He chuckled remembering the butter dish incident.

"So you're the Twin Terrors?" he asked.

Fred and George looked at each other.

"Twin Terrors?"

"Yeah, McGonagall said something about watching out for the Twin Terrors."

The twins looked surprised, ecstatic and excited, all at the same time. It reminded Harry of Arthur whenever he gets new Muggle stuff.

"Fred, it looks like our reputation precedes us."

Harry laughed and realization dawned on the twins.

"George, I think we've been had."

Ron laughed at the twin's horrified expressions.

"Well Harry," Fred started, "It's good to have someone after our own heart-"

"We'd be delighted to work with you in pranking the school" George finished.

"Well, what'd you expect from Prongs' son?" Harry asked knowing that the twins already have the Marauder's Map.

"P-P-Prongs? As in Moony…" Fred stuttered.

"Wormtail, Padfoot and Prongs." Harry supplied.

The twins fainted. Literally fainted. Ron was rolling on the floor laughing and people are already staring at them. Ginny rolled her eyes and dragged Harry away. Ginny let out a breath and Harry couldn't help but think that she's still nervous whenever he's around.

"You didn't do that before." Ginny said, causing Harry's mind to work in overdrive, trying to figure out the meaning of the statement. His eyes widened as realization hit him.

"G-Ginny? You too?"


	3. Fireplace Surprise

**Author's Note: 1) I do not own Harry Potter, 2) NONE of my stories are abandoned, school starts in a couple of days so updates would just be slowed down a bit and 3) please, please review.**

Harry stared at Ginny, his expression is one of pure, blank shock. Ginny smirked when she saw Harry's unnaturally wide eyes and Harry's mouth which formed a perfect "O".

"Harry, close your mouth, there are flies out here."

Harry stood there gaping at Ginny when Ron, Fred and George approached them. Ron looked from Harry to Ginny, then back to Harry again.

"Oy! That's my sister!"

Fred and George dragged Ron away from them as they apologized to Harry over and over again.

"Sorry about that, Heir of the Great Marauders!"

"Don't know what's gotten into him, he's usually stupid but not as stupid as this!"

This continued on until Molly and Hagrid finished talking and walked over to the kids. Molly entered her "mother" mode.

"Oh Harry dear, you'll come visit us won't you?" Molly said as she gave Harry one of her bone-crushing hugs.

Harry watched the Weasleys leave Diagon Alley, before turning to Hagrid.

"I'll be able to visit them, won't I?" he asked innocently. Hagrid smiled.

"Course yeh can Harry! Now, stay here, I'll go get yeh yer animal."

Harry knew that Hagrid is going to get Hedwig but he was still excited to see his faithful friend.

"I'll come with you Hagrid! I haven't seen an owl before!" Harry exclaimed, bouncing up and down on his feet. Hagrid beamed.

"Well, come on Harry. Eeylop's is over there."

They walked in silence towards the shop when Harry spotted the Magical Menagerie. He tugged on Hagrid's coat.

"Hagrid? I think I'll stay over there for a while." He said. Hagrid looked over to the store and told Harry to wait for him there. The Magical Menagerie looked the same as it did in Harry's third year. Magical creatures in tanks and cages. One tank in particular caught Harry's eye. It contained a single animal. A crimson red snake was watching Harry from within. Harry whispered in Parseltongue.

_What are you? _

The snake looked at him for a couple of seconds.

_Speaker, my name is Renevieve, the last member of the Scarlet Tiger Snake species, magical cousin of the more common Black Tiger Snake._

Harry remembered from his Auror studies that Black Tiger Snakes are on of the most poisonous and deadliest snakes in existence. A magical version of such a deadly animal would be pretty useful.

_Well, Renevieve, I think I'm going to release you from this dump._

_As you wish speaker, and please, call me Ren._

When Hagrid entered the Magical Menagerie holding a very familiar cage containing a very familiar owl, he was surprised to see a large, red snake coiled around Harry's arm. Harry introduced his new familiar to Hagrid and named his second familiar, Hedwig. When Harry reached Privet Drive, he made a detour. He approached the door and knocked. The door opened and out came a disgruntled, old lady.

"Harry! Did the Dursleys leave you alone again?"

"No Mrs. Figg, I wanted to talk to Dumbledore." he replied calmly. Whatever Arabella Figg was expecting, it wasn't that. She dropped the can of cat food she was holding and ushered Harry inside.

"Now, Harry. You just throw this stuff into the-" Harry cut her off.

"I know how to Floo, Mrs. Figg." He said. And with that, he threw the powder into the flames, entered the fire and yelled, "Dumbledore's Office!"

Professor Dumbledore has just finished interviewing one Professor Quirrel when Harry stepped out of the fireplace. Dumbledore chuckled.

"Ah, I was wondering when you'd pay me a visit, m'boy." He said as Harry stumbled onto the carpet. Harry blinked in surprise.

"You knew I was coming?" he asked. Dumbledore chuckled and Harry saw his piercing, blue eyes twinkling.

"Yes, my old friend Merlin explained the situation Harry. True, he never gave me a gift but he often comes up whenever I want a chat." Dumbledore's eyes were twinkling madly now.

"You know Merlin?" Harry questioned incredulously. Dumbledore chuckled again, much to Harry's annoyance.

"Of course Harry! Merlin is the most powerful wizard in history! He was allowed to rule the magical world, making sure that evil cannot succeed. The only limitation is the fact that he cannot interfere directly. He can just manipulate the small things. But, he can grant rewards to those he deems worthy, and apparently, you are worthy Harry. How old are you?" Dumbledore popped a lemon drop in his mouth as he said this. Misunderstanding the surprised look on Harry's face, he chuckled again.

"Of course, how rude of me. Lemon Drop, Harry?" This innocent question seemed to snap Harry out of his stupor.

"Y-You know, er, knew?" he asked. Dumbledore chuckled again.

"Yes, Harry, I do. No doubt you would want to stay with the Weasleys instead of those relatives of yours?"

"Er, yes sir-" Dumbledore clapped his hands before Harry could continue.

"Excellent, I'll tell Molly to pick you up tomorrow, make sure to pack everything." He reminded as Harry stumbled back onto the fireplace.

"Er, Harry?"

"Yes, Professor?"

"You forgot the Floo powder." 

Harry yelped as he noticed that his clothes are on fire.

**Author's Note: Chapter done! Note, **_**the italicized parts are in Parselmouth**_**, and Renevieve, or Ren, is the same snake in Back to Before. I love interconnections between non-series stories, don't you? *chuckles while eyes are twinkling madly***


	4. Pet Surprise

**Author's Note: It's a weekend and I get to update! Read and Review, pretty please with a cherry on top. :D**

When the Dursleys saw Harry enter the house, Dudley yelped and ran up the stairs while Uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia turned back to the television. Harry wasn't bothered by this. In fact, being ignored is better than being ordered around like a house elf. He was about to sprint up the stairs when he heard the news report that his relatives are watching.

"…the public is warned that Black is armed and extremely dangerous. A special hotline has been set up and any sighting of Black should be reported immediately."

Harry froze. His godfather escaped Azkaban, two years ahead of schedule. He searched his memories for anything he changed that resulted in Sirius' escape. Nothing came to mind and instead of going upstairs to pack, he exited the house and walked over to Magnolia Crescent, the place where he first met Sirius. He heard a rustling behind him and in one fluid motion, he pulled out his wand and pointed it in the general direction of the sound. He was about to approach the bush when a huge, bear-like dog emerged from the foliage. Harry stared at the dog, then, without warning, he rushed forward and engulfed the dog in a hug that would make Molly Weasley proud. The dog yelped in surprise and struggled to get out of Harry's grip.

"Stop wiggling, Padfoot, we'll get you home." He said.

Padfoot froze and stared at Harry with haunted eyes, the result of several years in the wizarding prison. A second later, the dog disappeared and in its place is a tall, black haired man. He stared at Harry, disbelief etched on his face. After a while, he spoke.

"How'd you know it was me?" he croaked.

"Short version or long one?"

"Just the lowdown." 

Harry watched as his godfather turned back into a dog and he laughed as Padfoot looked at him expectantly.

"Well, let's see. On my eighteenth birthday," he ignored the gasp-like bark that Padfoot let out, "Merlin came to me in a dream and when I woke up, I was ten again."

Padfoot turned back into human and his eyes were wide. He was about to speak again, but Harry cut him off.

"What about you? How the hell did you get out of Azkaban two years earlier?"

Sirius grinned.

"Well, there is a certain veil in the Department of Mysteries which put me here-" He was cut off again when Harry hugged him tightly, the air squeezed out of his lungs.

"Harry…can't…breathe…"

Harry let go, but he looked at Sirius and Sirius can see the shock, happiness and excitement in his face.

"I-It's you? The same Sirius from my time?"

"Apparently so. Now, what were you saying about getting me home?"

Sirius transformed into Padfoot and trotted happily behind his godson. Harry knocked on the door and Sirius saw…Arabella Figg. The dog almost fainted in surprise.

"Harry! What are you doing here?" she said, holding the door open for Harry and Padfoot.

"I wanted to talk to Professor Dumbledore again, ma'am." He said politely. Arabella smiled.

"Of course, dear. You know where the fireplace is, don't you? "

Professor Dumbledore was enjoying a particularly tasty lemon drop when the fireplace glowed brilliant green and Harry fell out of it, followed by a shaggy, black dog, which let out a series of barks that sounded a lot like laughter upon seeing the headmaster's face.

"Harry! To what do I owe this pleasant surprise?"

Harry shook off the ash on his robes before looking at the headmaster.

"Ah, Professor? Can you Floo the Weasleys and tell them to meet us here? And have them bring Scabbers along. I'm sure Padfoot here will take good care of him." He said. Dumbledore looked at the dog and was amused by the grin it had. It was almost manic. So Dumbledore threw a bunch of powder in the fireplace and stuck his head in.

"Arthur! Meet me here at my office in five minutes. Bring…er, what was the name again…oh yeah, bring Scabber with you."

Five minutes later, a red haired man emerged from the fireplace, followed by Ron, Ginny and Molly. Ron was holding tightly to Scabbers. Padfoot barked and when Scabbers saw him, he tried to get away from Ron.

"Harry!" Molly hugged Harry before turning to the headmaster.

"What seems to be the problem, Albus." She asked.

"Harry here, requested that you bring Scabbers for, ah, his dog to play with."

Ron looked at Harry as if he grew two extra heads.

"What? Do you see the look on that mutt's face?", Padfoot barked indignantly, "It's going to kill Scabbers!"

Everyone noticed the dark look on Harry's face. Even Padfoot had the sense to stay silent. Ron whimpered upon seeing Harry's glare.

"Padfoot is not a murderer." He whispered in a way that reminded him of Snape. Great, he thought, he reminded himself of Snape. Padfoot tugged on Harry's robe.

"Fork him over, Ron." Harry commanded. Ron clutched Scabbers even tighter. Molly decided to interfere.

"Harry, dear, I'm sure we can get you a rat…" Harry sighed. He didn't want to do it this way but his hand was forced.

"Revelo animagio!" The Weasleys watched, horrified, as Scabbers turned into a small man. He saw Padfoot and whimpered. He pointed at the dog.

"He's going to-" but Harry cast a Silencing charm on him. Ron was staring at Peter.

"Who are you?" he asked. Harry answered as Peter is still under the Silencing charm.

"His name is Peter Pettigrew," gasps from the Weasleys, except for Ginny who was smirking. "He was my parent's Secret Keeper, he betrayed them to Voldemort and he framed Sirius for it."

Arthur was thoughtful. If it was true, then the ministry put an innocent man in Azkaban. He shuddered at the thought. Molly, however, was dubious.

"How did you know that?" to her surprise, Harry chuckled.

"I'll tell you later Mrs. Weasley." He addressed Professor Dumbledore, "Sir, do you have any Veritaserum?"

A few minutes later, Peter admitted everything and Molly asked Harry again.

"How did you know that?" she asked then she shrieked when Padfoot transformed into Sirius.

"SIRIUS BLACK!" she cried, pointing at Sirius.

"Calm down, Mrs. Weasley. Sirius is innocent, remember?"

Molly was breathing heavily but she nodded. Sirius looked somber.

"It was my fault, Molly. James and Lily died because of me." He said.

"I thought it was Pettigrew?" Ron asked, confused.

"It was my idea to switch Secret Keepers. I thought it was the perfect bluff. Voldemort would come after me. I told them to switch to Peter. It was all my ruddy fault." Sirius was freely crying now and Harry hugged his godfather. Harry looked at Ginny and she smiled at him, before giving him a thumbs up. Sirius wiped his eyes.

"I'll take Pettigrew and have your name cleared, Sirius." Dumbledore said, patting Sirius on the back. Sirius nodded.

"Molly, I don't have a place to stay but Lily and James named me Harry's guardian. Could you please take him in until I find a flat or something?" Sirius pleaded. Arthur nodded but Molly spoke.

"Sirius, you and Harry are welcome to stay at the Burrow for as long as you like." She said gently.

"I don't want to be a bother…"

Harry tuned out of the argument and stared at Ginny. She was still smiling and Harry felt at peace.


	5. Train Surprise

**Author's Note: Frantic schedule, sorry for the delay…I think I'll put The Next Generation up for adoption but I'm not sure yet…as for now, read on.**

September first came pretty quickly for Harry and the Weasleys. Sirius couldn't buy a flat in London but he decided to purchase a huge plot of land right across the Burrow. The Weasleys and Harry became very close but Molly noticed that Harry and Ginny were closer to each other than the others. She almost dropped the plate of bacon she was holding when Sirius spoke from behind her.

"Ahhh…young love." He said with a huge smile. Molly stared at him.

"They're too young for that Sirius." She said exasperatedly. Sirius chuckled, knowing that Harry and Ginny were actually teenagers stuck in their eleven year old bodies. Harry told him that he was about to propose to Ginny back then. He might not be able to propose now (Molly would throw a fit.) but the feeling still remains. He stayed silent, however, for Molly's sake.

The trip to King's Cross was uneventful, unless you count Ginny throwing a tantrum because she wanted to sit beside Harry (Wonderful actress, thought Harry.) or Harry pestering Sirius because he couldn't find Ren until he finally decided to call her via Parseltongue (Ginny was rolling on the floor in laughter when she saw Ron's reaction. Ron, for his part, forgot to warn the ground that his jaw would be coming for a surprise visit.). Finally, they arrived at Platform 9 3/4. Harry smiled wistfully as he saw the familiar scarlet train and he glanced meaning fully at Ginny. They had an agreement thatthey would write each other at least once a day. Harry, Ron, the twins and Percy said their goodbyes and made their way to the train. Harry and Ron found a compartment and was surprised when a huge black dog came bounding in. Harry sighed.

"Sirius…"

When Hermione came in asking them if they have found a toad, Harry used a Summoning charm to locate Trevor and invited Hermione and Neville into the compartment. They talked about the Houses and Hogwarts for a while until the door opened and in came Draco Malfoy and his cronies.

"They're saying Harry Potter is on the train." He drawled, then he saw the scar on Harry's forehead before looking at his companions. Sneering, he addressed Harry.

"Obviously, Potter, you do not know what proper company is. But I'll blame your being Muggle raised for it. My father always tells me that hanging out with riffraff like the Weasleys or Mudbloods-" Harry decided to cut him off before he got on a roll.

"And what do you think?"

"Huh?"

"You said that your father thinks that. What do YOU think? Or are you just a wost, widdle boy who follows daddy all around and never thinking for yourself?" Harry replied, saying the last part in a babying tone.

Malfoy turned pink and glared at Harry.

"I could think for myself, Potter." He spat.

"Prove it." Harry answered coolly.

Malfoy glared at Harry one last time before turning around and storming off. Harry turned to his friends who were staring at him.

"Exploding snap?" 


	6. Sorting Surprise

**So sorry for the delay. Midterms and all that. Anyways, I no own Harry Potter XD. Never stopped hoping though.**

The exact moment that the train stopped, Harry grabbed his trunk and dragged it outside. He heard Hagrid's voice booming as he called to the first years. Harry beamed up at the half-giant.

"Hello, Hagrid!" he called.

"Hiya 'Arry. Four to a boat!" Hagrid shouted the last part. Harry, Ron, Neville and Hermione climbed into a boat. Padfoot bounded in after Harry and almost capsized them.

"PADFOOT!"

A couple of drying spells from Harry, grateful words from Neville and queries from Hermione later, the first years found themselves in front of a stern woman. Harry grinned. Minnie never changed.

"I'll handle the first years from here, Hagrid." She said. Padfoot barked out what sounded eerily like a laugh and silent hissing can be heard from Harry's sleeve. McGonagall eyed Padfoot warily.

"Follow me, please." She finally said before leading them to the side room. While Neville was listening to Ron and Hermione bicker, Harry hissed to Ren.

_Shush, Ren. We don't want people to know you're here._

_Why? _

_They think snakes are evil._

_That's stupid._

_Well, most of the Wizarding World is stupid._

_Oh…_

Their conversation was cut short when they heard shrieks from around them. In a flash, Harry had his wand in his right hand and pointed at…Nearly Headless Nick.

"Dear Friar, we gave Peeves too many chances already!" he was saying. Harry smirked as his fellow first years gaped in shock at the ghosts. Harry turned his attention to the Grey Lady.

"Lady Ravenclaw!" he called out. The people around him stared weirdly at him, until Helena Ravenclaw approached him.

"How do you know my name, child?" she asked. Harry shrugged before leaning in conspiratorially to her.

"Your mother's diadem is in the seventh floor, the Room of Requirement. Voldemort turned it into a Horcrux." He whispered. Helena gasped.

"If you will destroy it, I will retrieve it for you." She said. Harry nodded gratefully.

The first years who were staring at him in shock was awoken from their stupor when McGonagall fetched them for the sorting. Harry tuned out the hat after "Abbot, Hannah" was sorted into Hufflepuff. He clapped when Hermione and Neville got into Gryffindor. Ron gave him weird looks when he clapped for Malfoy. Then…

"Potter, Harry!" McGonagall called. Harry approached the hat amidst whispers, sat on the uncomfortable stool and put it on.

_Hi Hat!_ He yelled in his mind. Thje hat groaned and said aloud,

"Would you please lower your Occlumency shields?" Several of the older students gasped, Dumbledore's eyes twinkled and Snape's face contorted in rage.

_I'll think about it Hatty Poo._

_Don't call me that!_

_Gryffindor or nothing._

_I should put you in Slytherin just to spite you._

_YES! _Another voice in his head screamed. Harry almost jumped out of his skin while the Hat jumped a couple of inches before landing back on Harry's head.

_Who the hell are you?_

Another voice answered him.

_Don't scare the lad, Salazar. And we both know that he belongs in my house!_

_Shut it, Godric._

Harry was confused right now and he screamed in his thoughts as loud as he can.

_Child! I know you want to punish those two idiots but please leave me and Helga out of this!_

The Sorting Hat decided to intervene.

_Harry? I think that those are the founders who are talking in your head._

_You think?_ Said the voice of Salazar Slytherin.

_Of course he does! He's my hat!_ Godric replied.

_Oh, shut it you two. You're scaring poor Harry._ Said the voice who Harry thought was Rowena Ravenclaw.

Helga Hufflepuff snickered as Harry's eyes widened comically. The people who saw this wondered what could be going on in the boy's head. The Sorting Hat laughed out loud as he explained the situation again to Harry. Understanding dawned on him.

"WHAT THE BLOODY HELL DO YOU MEAN THAT THE FOUNDERS ARE IN MY HEAD?"

**Just a comedy part XD Laughter is the best medicine after all. XD**


End file.
